The word of God led the Israelites through the wilderness of bondage and slavery. That’s our sacred story and it is the story of those who have gone before us. God is always showing up, speaking, and acting in the wilderness places of our lives. It is our preparation for the coming of the Christ. That’s why every year at this time the season of Advent takes us not just to the wilderness but to our wilderness. Hidden within every wilderness is the beauty of divine presence. It’s the place where our lives can be transformed, the place we are most open to changing and being changed. Before him it was Isaiah crying out, “Prepare the way of the Lord.” That’s what John the Baptist knows and proclaims in today’s gospel. There is no way out of or around the wilderness. Either way it is hard work most of would rather avoid. Sometimes we go to the wilderness, other times it comes to us. John the Baptist by Meister von Gracanica, 1235 (Source: Wikimedia Commons) In the wilderness we face the truth of who we are and what our life is like. In the wilderness there are no distractions. This interior wilderness brings us to the limits of our own self-sufficiency, it leaves us feeling vulnerable and exposed, living on the edge. The wilderness of which I am speaking is not the geography around us but the landscape within us. Our stories would be ones of struggles, ups and downs, highs and lows, stories of being lost and overwhelmed, stories of stumbling, falling down, and wondering when, how, or even if we will get up again. I am not talking about the scenic overlook along the highway, the unspoiled beauty of nature, or that quiet, back to nature, weekend getaway from the hassles of life. Each one of us could tell a story about the wilderness.
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